Brockport adopts budget,
hears dispatch dissolution concerns

With the May 1 deadline only hours away, officials in the Village of Brockport passed a resolution to adopt its 2002-2003 village budget at a special meeting held April 30.

Before the budget was adopted, many residents voiced their disapproval with the mayor and the board members at the announcement that officials would be researching the benefits of disbanding the village’s dispatching unit.

It was announced last week that officials were considering moving their emergency dispatching services to Monroe County’s 911 service. Mayor Josephine Matela said the change to a 911 service was only in the beginning discussion stages and if a move were to be made it wouldn’t take place until May of 2003.

Trustee Morton Wexler said he has spoken to people on both sides of the dispatching issue. "I hear your concerns," he said. "But it is a matter of numbers."

Wexler said the idea of eliminating anyone’s income is not something that is taken lightly. "I’ll tell you right now though I have seen the numbers for next year and they make this year’s numbers look great," he said. "We have to make a decision at some point of where do we reach the level where we are driving people out of the community with our tax rates."

Initial numbers indicate the village may be able to save $1.2 million in taxpayer dollars over a four-year period. If the village moves to the Monroe County 911 dispatch system, it affects not only village residents, but residents in Hamlin, Clarkson and Sweden, residents said.

A hand-out distributed before the meeting shows that it costs the village $274,755, or six percent, of the total village budget to operate Brockport’s Communication Center. The total cost of operating the Emergency Communication Center, on average per homeowner, after figuring in revenues and sales tax, they say is $3.29 per month.

Resident Glen Emerson presented Village Treasurer Scott Rightmyer a check for $39.49. "Here’s my share of the department for the next year," he said.

Community safety, response time and officer safety were the main concerns voiced by residents. Dispatcher Dave Smith said, "We learned on September 11 that we can be attacked viciously and quickly and we need a good response time," he said. "I’m concerned with the loss of local impact and the effect this would have on our community."

Inga Songbird thanked board members for offering residents the opportunity to voice their opinions. Before she took the podium she presented a scroll of paper with a list of 186 names and their responses to the possible dissolution of the dispatching center. "When thoughts turn to downsizing we not only disregard the well-being of the residents but we begin to shred the tapestry of Brockport," she said.

Songbird held up three rolls of toilet paper to illustrate her point that the cost of saving the dispatching system was minimal. "I will personally go to all the homes in this village and collect checks from everyone to keep the communication center open," she said. "And for the price of three rolls of toilet paper, per month, we can keep our dispatching service."

Trustee Norm Knapp said the initial figures for next year's budget are staggering but he is optimistic that the economy will turn around. "We have to think positive but we still have to weigh the cost versus the benefits of every department within the village," he said.

Before board members adopted the budget, Police Chief Varrenti spoke to audience members stating he had asked the board to approve the hiring of two additional police officers as a way to eliminate the department’s "excessive" overtime budget. "I could have saved the taxpayers more than $20,000 with the addition of a second officer," he said.

Wexler said the bottom line is that over a three year period the officer would end up costing the village $86,000. "In the long run it could be cheaper to go with the overtime," he said.

The board did adopt the village’s $4.6 million budget by a vote of three to two. Trustees Wexler, Knapp and James Whipple were in favor of the budget while Matela and Trustee Peter DeToy voted against it. Rightmyer said the budget adopted includes more than $2.8 million in salaries and benefits. The budget passes along a tax rate of $7.50 per $1,000 of assessed valuation rather than the $8.10 per $1,000 that was originally proposed.

Taxpayers in the village with a home assessed at $84,737, will have an annual tax bill of approximately $635.53.